NAGPUR: The state government has revived plans to set up a jumbo centre to treat Covid patients on the lines of Mumbai and Pune.
After a review meeting, guardian minister Nitin Raut said an expert team was constituted to identify a suitable place. The team visited probable locations like the Mankapur indoor stadium, Nagpur University’s campus off Amravati Road and its ground at Ravi Nagar, Employees’ State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) Hospital and Haj House. A report would be submitted soon.
On Thursday, Raut had declined to start a 500-bed hospital at the Mankapur indoor stadium, a plan suggested by mayor Dayashankar Tiwari. The minister had told TOI that it wouldn’t be feasible due to lack of health manpower like doctors and nurses.
Earlier too efforts were made by the then NMC commissioner Tuakram Mundhe to set up a jumbo Covid centre at Radha Swami Satsang off Katol Road. The NMC had purchased cots and mattresses worth lakhs, but the plan fizzled out.
Raut had even said that efforts were under way to collectively add around 1,000 beds at the Government Medical College and Hospital, Indira Gandhi GMCH and AIIMS.
“We’re making every possible effort to provide beds to critical patients. Additionally, we’ve granted permission to many nursing homes and other small hospitals to set up Covid beds. We’re also opening up hospitals like Ayurveda Colleges and ESIC for Covid patients,” he said.
The minister, however, stated that the only difficulty would be the supply of oxygen for patients for which the administration was in contact with several companies in Visakhapatnam and Bhopal. “We’ve already started receiving oxygen supply from Bhilai and efforts are being made to produce in-house oxygen through the atmosphere. Efforts are also being made to restart a oxygen-producing unit at MIDC Hingna. We’re also directly recruiting MBBS interns to tide over the crisis of qualified manpower required in hospitals.”
The minister even rushed a letter to medical education minister Amit Deshmukh seeking state-of-the-art Crisper Feluda machines to expedite RTPCR testing. “The results are available in flat 30 minutes,” he said.
According to Raut, the 200 beds proposed for the National Cancer Institute (NCI) in Jamtha would be an added advantage.
Structural audit finds NNSR feasible: Collector
Collector Ravindra Thakare told TOI that the structural audit report of Nagpur Nagrik Sahakari Rugnalaya (NNSR) was found positive with recommendations to use the ground and first floor. The Nagpur bench of Bombay high court had directed Thakare to check NNSR’s feasibility and submit a report. “I inspected the place. We will take a decision after discussions with all stakeholders,” he said.